Online English language learning activities and academic achievement: Experiences of first year students and their teachers

The central objective of the study is to address the following question: what are the perceptions of students and their teachers about the impact of using online English language learning activities on students’ academic achievement in the Preparatory Year Programme at Imam Abdulrahamn bin Faisal University? The study combines both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data about these perceptions. The main instruments were students’ and teachers’ questionnaires and interviews, and classroom observations. In total, 1696 students and 52 teachers completed the questionnaires, 16 students and 6 teachers participated in the interviews and 16 e-learning classes were observed. The findings indicated that online English language learning activities enabled students to practice independently outside classrooms, which in turn was perceived to have a positive impact on academic achievement. Furthermore, participants believed that online learning promoted the development of vocabulary, listening and grammar skills. Also, online learning activities were seen to increase students’ readiness to move to the next level of study.